Where does Iowa stand when it comes to education spending?

School funding is a focus of many campaigns leading up the Nov. 6 midterm election, with politicians on both sides of the aisle claiming to be on the side of Iowa students.

But what do the numbers say?

A review of Iowa’s budget history shows the state is spending more money on education than ever before.

It rose from $1.9 billion in 2000 to nearly $3.2 billion in 2017-18, according to the Department of Education’s annual Condition of Education Report. That’s an increase of $1.3 billion.

Since 2011, when Republicans took partial control of the Legislature, K-12 school funding has increased nearly $713 million, according to the nonpartisan Legislative Services Agency.

But state funding growth has slowed in recent years.

State supplemental aid, the amount of new money available to schools, grew an average of 3.27 percent annually between 2000 and 2010. Since then it has dropped to 1.73 percent per year.

That’s less than inflation, which rose 1.81 percent annually on average from 2011 to 2018, according to U.S. Bureau of Labor statistics. That has led to budget cuts for many districts.

Supplemental aid, which is approved by the Legislature, determines how much money local school districts receive per student.

In Iowa, funding per student has increased an average of $145 per year from 2000 to 2010. But since then it has slowed to $94 per year.

Here’s how per-pupil spending has grown in recent years:

2014-15: 4 percent ($245 more per student)

2015-16: 1.25 percent ($80 more per student)

2016-17: 2.25 percent ($145 more per student)

2017-18: 1.11 percent ($73 more per student.)

2018-19: 1 percent ($67 more per student, plus up to $5 for some district)

Iowa’s per-student funding stands at $6,736 this school year. Combined with other state and federal funds that amount is closer to $11,330, according to 2017-18 department of education data.

Iowa ranks toward the center nationally when it comes to spending per student, trailing neighboring states such as Illinois, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Nebraska.

Many education advocates argue those lower spending increases are not keeping pace with rising operating costs, including health care and teacher salaries, which can lead to fewer teachers in the classroom.

The number of full-time teachers in Iowa increased 3 percent since 2011, but that’s due in part to the state’s leadership program, which was launched in 2014-15. That program actually takes some teachers out of the classroom to serve as mentors.

There were more than 9,500 teachers in the leadership program last school year.

Meanwhile, classroom sizes have remained relatively stable.

The average third-grade classroom in Iowa had 21.6 students in 2011 and 21.7 students in 2016, according to state’s Condition of Education report.

But individual class sizes vary greatly. The smallest third-grade class in Iowa had only three students in 2014-15, while the largest had 32 students, according to the report.

About 11 percent of Iowa third-grade classes had more than 25 students, above the state’s goal of 17 students.

Another factor contributing to Iowa’s growing education costs is the state’s changing demographics.

In 2000-01, roughly 27 percent of Iowa students qualified for free or reduced lunch, an indicator of poverty. Last school year, nearly 41 percent did.

And the number of English Language Learners has grown 160 percent from 2000 through 2017, from 11,300 students to 29,400 students.

There are now almost 140 languages spoken by Iowa students and their families.

Iowa provides additional per-student funding for students who are learning English for the first time. For every $1 a school receives for a typical student’s education, it receives $1.33 to educate ELL students. The additional $0.33 per dollar can be available for up to five years.

Education advocates say more funding is needed, and for a longer period of time — up to seven years.

What about teacher salaries and benefits?

More than 82 percent of school funding goes to salaries and benefits — including teachers, administrators, paraeducators and others — making employees the largest expense in every district’s budget.

Iowa ranks 22nd national when it comes to teacher pay. Here’s how Iowa compares to surrounding states:

Illinois, No. 11, $61,342

Minnesota, No. 19, $56,910

Wisconsin, No. 21, $54,766

Iowa, No. 22, $54,416

Nebraska, No. 27, $51,364

Kansas, No. 36, $49,197

Missouri, No. 41, $47,849

South Dakota, No. 50, $42,025

To view the graph on multiple platforms click here.

But a recent ranking shows that a teacher’s salary in Iowa stretches more than in most states.

On average, Iowa teachers made more than $54,000 in 2016 — but it felt more like $60,000 because of the low cost of living here, according to a national analysis by EdSurge.

EdSurge used National Center for Education Statistics teacher salary data and Missouri Economic Research and Information Center for cost of living adjustment data in completing the analysis.

When the cost of living is factored in, Iowa ranked sixth in the country for teacher compensation.